1. Technical Field
This invention relates to the field of speech recognition and more particularly to presenting database query results in an audio user interface.
2. Description of the Related Art
Designing effective methods of presenting information to users can be challenging for application developers. In a non-visual medium, such as telephony, this problem can be complicated even further. Specifically, in an audio user interface (“AUI”), visual feedback is not available to cue users or to confirm the accurate contextual understanding of user speech input. Additionally, listening to and comprehending spoken information typically consumes more time and can be less comfortable to users when compared to the visual comprehension of the same information. The problems associated with an AUI can become exacerbated when text-to-speech technology is used to present information. Moreover, using voice recognition to control and manipulate the presentation of audible information also can prove problematic.
Presently, conventional AUIs have been configured to process spoken database queries from which query result sets can be audibly played back through the telephony interface. One method illustrated in the flow chart of FIG. 4A that is typically used to present the results of a database query over a telephone involves a series of synchronously performed procedures. These procedures can include querying a database, retrieving query result items from the database, converting the query result items to audible sound samples that can be played back to the user, playing back the audible sound samples to the user, and receiving a user response to the played back results. The query results typically can be presented as follows: “Say ‘one’ for <result 1>; Say ‘two’ for <result 2>; . . . Say ‘n’ for <result n>.” Typically, the user regains control over the application only after the database query operation has been completed, the full set of query results have been received, the results have been converted to speech, and the speech converted results have been played back to the user.
While the database query is only one of the steps in the process of obtaining and presenting information to the user, the latency which can result in consequence both of the database query and the speech representation of the result can play an important role in the design of AUIs. FIG. 4B is a time progression block diagram showing the time progression of a conventional database query process. As shown in FIG. 4B, in a conventional telephony interface to database information, query results are not presented to the requesting user until the database search operation has been completed. However, complicated queries involving large databases can cause lengthy delays before the user can receive any response through the telephony interface. These lengthy delays can cause usability problems. Most typically, the user simply hangs up. Moreover, inefficiencies can arise where the requested information is located near the beginning of the query results list, but the user is compelled to wait until the entire query results list has been compiled. In this case, the user has no way to interrupt the query operation prior to completion. Hence, what is needed is a solution to the problems encountered when querying a database through an AUI.